Knife Basics

How to Hold the Knife

Allow the knife to balance gently in the palm of your hand with hand open.

Place the lower three fingers of the hand you use to hold the knife around the handle with the middle finger on the bolster.

The thumb and index finger clasp the blade left and right.

How to Cut Using the "Claw Grip"

The free hand holds the material to be cut. The fingertips face the rear inside of the palm so cutting your fingers can be avoided.

The knife is close up against the fingers so that the blade lightly touches the fingers when cutting.

The cook's knife is moved straight up and down along the fingers with the tip of the knife always staying on the cutting board. So the knife makes a rocking movement.